Finish Line
by CharlieMichelle
Summary: When we know what we want we forget what we need. When you learn who you are, you'll forget about me. -Movie compatible(ish)- -Jessie(oc)/Jem- -Language- -Song Fic-


**A/N: Ok this is NOT the holiday cheerful one I promised, and this will NOT be the last Jessie/Jem fic I ever write. This is however an idea that popped into my head (as most do) during my shower and it literally would not leave. Now that's it all written up I'm not going to waste it by simply saving the document! Pshh that's silly. So, here you all go. **

**In case you all are wondering the lyrics in this fic are to Train's song 'Finish Line'... its really good I suggest a listen. **

****Key:

**This is lyrics**

_This is memories_**  
**

This is normal present time

**_This is memories in the memories. Like Inception only... not._**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Town or any part of it. I do not own the lyrics to 'Finish Line' by Train. I only own Jessie**

* * *

**I thought I knew it all…**

**I've been through the highs, said all my goodbyes…**

**Learned to run before I learned to crawl…**

**It's not worth fighting for if one of us is sure…**

**And one of us is dying, trying to find loves cure…**

* * *

She never looked back, she never sought to. She didn't wince as she left most of her belongings in her rundown apartment, didn't flinch as she locked his up one last time. She didn't check the rear-view as she drove away from what she deemed her home. She didn't do any of these things until she was finally out of the state of Massachusetts, but by that point she couldn't see what she left behind anyway.

She only stopped for gas. She ignored her doctors orders, food wouldn't stay in her stomach baby or not. She only acknowledged her phone twice during the drive; "I love you." the message clear as day on her screen as her hands shook. "I know. Be safe." she typed back, an automatic response. She seemed to just know that there wouldn't be a reply, not this time.

She let her emotions through for a few short moments, her shoulder shook as she realized that there were no more boys, no more injuries to take care of, picnics, or movie nights. Most importantly though… there was no more Jem. There was no more rough around the edges and dangerous and perfectly caring Jem Coughlin and although she never confirmed it, she knew it.

"Damn it." she grunted out as she slammed her hands on her steering wheel. A few moments later she had left the small road stop, with it she left her phone. There would be no more messages for her to read.

* * *

**I have waited all my life to paint these cities red…**

**Thoughts I've always had here are stuck inside my head…**

**It's not worth waiting for if one of us wants more…**

**And one of us is dying, trying to find loves door…**

* * *

"Ya' 'eady?' Jem looked up at his long time buddy, Doug MacRay, then he looked at the ground and nodded once. "Ya don't hafta' do this Jem."

Jem looked back up at his friend, his brother, his only family left. "Says who?"

"Me." Doug bit back, "this is not a life we should hafta' live. C'mon… me and you, we leave together."

""Eal funny Dougie… leave to whe'e? Huh? We can't just go to some fuckin' coast town, I can't just go to some coast town." Jem said as he threw his hands around expressively. "The'e ain't no whe'e for me to go. This… this is my town, and I ain't leavin'."

Doug sighed and shook his head; "Oh yeah? This is yah' town? Is this fuckin' town worth losing eve'ythin' fah'? Is it!?" His hands on his hips he stalked over to the window, he rubbed his face and chuckled. "Is it wo'th losin' Jessie ova' this town?"

"Leave he' the fuck out of this." Jem growled out. "She left on he' own."

"She left because yah' too blind to see what she saw!" Doug could have hit him, could have knocked him on his ass. He wouldn't though, because if they were to do this job (God he hoped not) then he needed Jem to be at his best physically and mentally. "She left because you let he'."

Jem looked at his friend, a new emotion in his mind and expressed. "She had to go Dougie…"

Doug stood and stared at his friend; "Yeah? Well so do you."

But there would be no more arguing because Jem and Doug had a job to do. A big job for an even bigger person. They had one goal in mind; get in, get the money, get out. They'd do it, Doug was confident enough in all of them for this to work.

Doug was confident that after this Jem would follow her, for not just himself but for her and the baby. "We'll be ok…" he muttered out to himself while he followed Jem out the door.

* * *

**When we learn how to fly…**

**We forget how to walk…**

* * *

_"Please don't do this Jem." She sat at the small kitchen table in his small and broken apartment. Jem stood against the counter, she couldn't look at him though. "Please tell me you aren't going to do this."_

_He laughed darkly, dryly like he did the first time she met him. "I don't have a choice sweethea't."_

_She shook her head and let out a snort; "of course you do. You always have a choice Jem!" she finally looked up at him to see he was impassive, dismissive. "Choose not to do this. Please."_

_"Its not that easy!" He snapped out at her, he regretted it when he watched her wince and look back down at the table, but he wasn't apologizing._

_"Fergie says as henchmen do." She bit out before she huffed out air. "You promised…"_

_"Well those get b'oken eve'yday." He grabbed a beer from his fridge, "…pa't of life." he said after his gulp._

_"That wasn't a flimsy promise James." His snapped wide as she used his real name "That wasn't just a flimsy heat of the moment promise, you PROMISED on our DAUGHTER that you would leave this town after your last job."_

_"I will…" he argued back while he drank form the cold bottle, "…this is the last job."_

_"You're delusional." He raised an eyebrow. "Don't you understand that this is never going to stop? That what you're doing will never end…"_

_He knew, he knew it all too well and that was why he didn't say anything back. "I'm not raising her like that… YOU aren't raising her like that."_

_He didn't have time to really say anything else, she pushed passed him and went towards the door. She moved in two weeks ago (took a whole lot of convincing but she did it). He knew though, her belongings (the more important ones) were still at her shitty ass apartment, she'd stay there during all their jobs._

_His grip tightened considerably on his bottle._

* * *

**When we learn how to sing…**

**We don't wanna' hear each other talk…**

* * *

_It was Monday when she went back to his apartment. It started with a hey, it started with a hug and a tear, it started with a hard bruising kiss… it ended the same._

_So now she sat, in her own apartment in his old hoody. There she sat for hours as she hugged the sent of him and everything that he was to her back into her mind and her soul. There she sat with her small bulge in her stomach as she attempted to calm herself down. "Daddy loves you princess…" she whispered._

_It was much the same down the hall. Jem had stood at his counter for what seemed like forever before he pulled out another beer. This was for the best, he told himself, Jessie and the baby getting out of Charlestown… moving on. That was what he wanted for his daughter, for his own little princess. After the job he'd go down to D.C., he'd beg if he had to, he'd grovel and he'd never let her do this again._

_He gulped down his beer and made his way to his room, on the way he texted an old resource. It started with a little coke, it started with a playful squeeze, it started with a clouded judgment… it ended with Jem and a stranger in bed together and Jessie as she started to pack._

* * *

**Here we are at the finish line…**

**Here we are at the finish line…**

* * *

_"Yah' d'unk." Doug said on a Wednesday night while he sat with Jem at the local bar. "Why ah' ya' d'unk?"_

_"I fuckin' can be." It was such a simple answer, so short and sweet but Doug knew what really happened. Jessie hadn't been in her apartment (or Jem's) since Monday. Doug has visited and sat with her at the hospital twice now, he went to the ultrasound on Tuesday to replace Jem… and it devastated him._

_"You haven't touched a d'ink in ages." Doug said as he himself ordered a cranberry juice. "Like that 'bout you."_

_Jem simply snorted before he gulped his mixed vodka and sprite. "Changed m'mind."_

_Doug didn't say anything more, not for a while. If Jem wanted to bask in the glory of his fuck up, Doug would let him. After a few minutes of silence Doug broke the silence; "she's gonna' be beautiful."_

_"If she's anything like he' motha' she'll be fuckin' gorgeous." Jem said with sincerity and longing laced through out his voice._

_"She's gonna' need a fatha'… y'know to keep them boys away f'om he'." Doug said as he finished off his cranberry juice._

_"She'll find someone."_

_Doug patted Jem's shoulder; "She already did…"_

* * *

**And you, you really thought you knew…**

**Everything to do…**

**With holding onto me and holding on…**

* * *

She hugged her parents, the sweet couple that took her in at the brutal age of twelve, maybe it was later… she couldn't remember. She let her mother pat her hair and gush over how well she looked for six months along. She let her father pat her shoulder and carry her bags.

"We heard…" Jessie snapped her eyes up at her mother, she'd been staring at the same cup of hot tea for a few minutes. "…A Doug called, he told us about the accident."

Her heart clenched and her eyes squeezed shut. "He seemed like a wonderful man dear…" Jessie could only nod as her mother pulled into her warm embrace once again.

Thoughts reeled through her head. That was the story Doug had given them, Jem (James) had died in a tragic car accident while on his way to work. His service was beautiful and simple with as many Irish traditions you could possibly fit in. His friends Desmond, Doug, and Albert had given touching speeches at the cemetery. Her mother gushed at how wonderful it'll be to have a little baby running around; "she'll always know her father dear, don't you worry." she chastised.

It was later on in the evening, as she sat on the small porch with her lips pinched between teeth that she'd tell the truth. "He wasn't James the banker Dad…" she would begin the story.

"He never hurt you?" She shook her head no as some tears spewed from her eyes. "He sounds just as wonderful as James." He pulled her to his side and brunches her hair with his fingers.

"I don't know what to do." she whispered, safe and content in her fathers arms.

"You live. You live and you move on and by some small miracle he'll make it back to you, but if not… you tried."

* * *

**This time is making me slip right through your hands…**

**And now you don't understand…**

**Trying to find love all yourself…**

* * *

Des was dead. That was the only thought that ran through Jem's mind. Des was dead and they were fucked. He cursed as another bullet whizzed passed him. "What do we do Dougie!?" Gloans screamed from the ambulance.

Doug looked at Des's body and then at his two friends. He swallowed and sent a helpless look. "They ain' lookin' for cops." Jem and Doug both whipped their heads towards Gloansy. "I distract while you two change take the money and go."

"Gloans…"

He waved Jem off easily, but the heavy look in his eyes just said otherwise; "I've gotten out of tighter spots."

That was how Jem found himself walking down the street. Like another face in the crowd. Like he belonged, and with that sack of money on his back he could find a way to get to Jessie and he could start a fund for his daughter. He didn't think about the phone call he made Doug make before they went in, she knew the truth but he wanted her parents to think of him as respectable.

He broke out into a smile. "Coughlin!"

That was the moment Jem knew what Jessie knew all along.

* * *

**When we learn how to fly…**

**We forget how to walk…**

**When we learn how to sing…**

**Don't wanna' hear each other talk…**

* * *

_Thursday night Jem answered the door to Jessie. She looked exhausted. "You shouldn't be he'e."_

_"Your sister gave me a ride." was her reply as she pressed her way into the small hotel room. "I just wanted to say…"_

_She stopped and stared at him before she shook her head. "I just wanted to say goodbye."_

_He nodded as he leant against the closed door, "you said it."_

_"You'll text me?" She pushed her luck by even showing up. She pushed her luck when he answered, and she'd push her luck again. Then she remembered; she pushed her luck when she first helped him, first sat with him, shared a secret with him, shared a kiss with him._

_He didn't answer her as she made her way back towards the door, his body wouldn't move. She was a breath away when he reached for her hand, a squeeze, and a kiss to her forehead then her cheek… finally her lips. "I'll text you."_

_She couldn't say anything else as she nodded and he opened the door; "I love you Jem…" He nodded as he shut the door. She met up with a distraught Krista and Shyne. She denied a ride when she made her way home, walked._

* * *

**When we know what we want…**

**We forget what we need…**

**When you find who you are…**

**You forget about me…**

* * *

_At nine thirty in the morning on that Friday Jessie had stepped out of her apartment. She had already packed her small car, only pictures and valuables were leaving with her. The bed could stay, the sofa could stay, his hoody could stay. She swallowed and scolded herself for being upset as she made her way down to his apartment._

_He wouldn't be there, she knew that but when she opened the door and saw the familiar walls she swore she could see him. She saw a picture of them on his table, what looked like drugs scattered around. She frowned as she stepped in and gathered her valuables from him. Once her small box was full she took another look around._

_She noticed a sloppy note on the kitchen table. She only read the last line; "Daddy loves you" before she folded it and tucked in the box. As she stepped out she locked the door before she slid the key in her pocket (she'd done the same with hers). While she walked down the hall she was swamped with memories._

_**"Who the fuck is this?" Jessie simply smiled before coming over by the tall one; "Se'ously she's fuckin' sport'n D.C.!" She huffed out a breath.**_

_She laughed a little as she made her way towards the dirty and clangy elevator._

_**"Baby, don't ya' know me by now?" She scoffed but he ignored it, he initiated the hug again this time (once he was able to reach her) and squeezed every time he felt her mouth open to speak. "I p'tect my people, I p'tect my family, but most of all I p'tect what's mine."**_

_As the elevator doors closed she let out an airy laugh, almost like a dry sob._

_**"Ok I've had enough." Dougy said before he pushed back in his seat. "It was weird enough that Jem is a wanna' be comedian but the fact that Jessie and Jem are a tag team? Nope, can't handle it."**_

_As she's walked out the building she couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness of the entire thing. The dramatics, the swamped feeling of just dread._

_**"Bullshit." He stood up, intentionally leaned up against her, damn did it feel good. "I think you finally accepted that I'm a keepa'." He pressed a kiss to her neck, trailed small kisses down to her shoulder, before he finally turned her around and kissed her lips.**_

_She was already on the road when that memory popped into her mind. She smiled softly and subconsciously rubbed at her stomach._

_**"Someone does need you." He cut her off shortly before he pressed a brief but stern kiss to the top of her head; "I need you."**_

_She refused to think after that._

* * *

**Here we are at the finish line…**

* * *

It hurt like a bitch, Jem would acknowledge that but he wasn't going down. He wasn't quitting. He took a gulp from a drink he found on the ground, who the fuck cared right? Who the fuck cared if he was dead? He'd tell you who, but part of him hoped that by the time she heard the honest truth she'd be moving on. His little girl, god he wanted his little girl happy and SAFE.

The last sound he heard was bullets being shot. The last thing he saw was Jessie curled up in his bed with his hoody.

* * *

**Here we are at the finish line…**

* * *

Doug stood out on his deck. He took in the scenery of Florida, the warm glow of the sun and the feeling of being free as it finally sank in. He missed all of them, Gloansy, Des and Jem. He missed Krista and Shyne. He missed Jessie. He timed it perfectly. The money made it to her new apartment in D.C. the way he had intended and God she looked like she was going to burst.

He laughed softly at the idea, but that was someone he'd never get to know. He picked up his ice water and walked back in towards his cool house. He finally stopped seeking for the correct answer, he finally stopped asking, and he's finally moved on.

* * *

**Here we are at the finish line…**

* * *

It had been a gift, the money that appeared out of no where. A gift and she knew it had come from one of them, the only one left, she thought sadly. She had heard the news, Gloansy in the ambulance, Des shot on the spot, and Jem… Jem fighting for what he truly believed until his last breath to be shot multiple times by Boston Police.

She walked into the baby's room with a small bundle in her arms. She reminded her of Jem, spiteful attitude, angry cries that could wake the dead, but most importantly the fierceness in her eyes that let Jess know… everything was going to be alright. As she placed her daughter down in her crib she brushed away some of her baby hair; "Daddy loves you princess."

* * *

**A/N: So if I'm the only one who was upset during that (and I wrote it) I completely fail as a human being and I fail on how to convey some kind of emotion. Oh btw... this is not a bunch of lyrics... I think I'm funny. Alright well that's a wrap for now! As always thank you to all you lovely readers, especially the ones that leave me pleasant (or negative) reviews, and those who add me to their alerts or favorites. **

**I do have a holiday Jem/Jessie fic, I'm about half way through it. If my partners do one thing right tonight it'll be to not let me up from my computer. Hope you all enjoyed it! **


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